Its been 21 years, but her dream of being a nurse is now a reality.
JoPhena Simpson, 35, graduated from the University of Nebraska Medical
Center College of Nursing Dec. 18.
She can tell you the defining moment in her life when she decided she
wanted to be a nurse.
She was 14-years-old at home with her newborn son when a visiting nurse
came to her house. The nurse, whose name she cant remember, came to visit
her and gave her a complimentary layette for her son, who is now 21.
She didnt treat me differently or talk down to me just because I was
young, Simpson said. The way she treated methat was when I made my decision
to be a nurse and the type of nurse I wanted to be. I was just impressedthe
way she treated me with respect.
After graduating from high school in a first-step toward her professional
goals, she earned a medical assistant diploma in 1983 from the Nebraska
College of Business. A couple of years later, she was considering going
to nursing school but was talked out of it. She also was frightened about
the new discovery of AIDS and what that may mean to her as a health care
provider.
So, she began doing clerical work. But nursing was always in the back
of her mind. Finally, in 1992, she decided to pursue her dream. She applied
to and was accepted at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, which is where
she began coursework to eventually attend UNMC to earn a bachelors of
science degree in nursing.
Things were rolling along, but life got in the way.
In 1995, she got divorced and became a single mother of three children,
ages 17, 13 and 10. She also entered the UNMC College of Nursing.
As if life wasnt challenging enough, Simpson suffered losses of family
members.
During one semester, her brother got sick, and then her father died.
In the summer, her grandmother and brother passed away.
I think these obstacles in my path were my determination to get
through school, Simpson said. How I got through was by the grace of God.
He helped me. I was so determined to finish.
While she was going through school, she also worked part time for the
Visiting Nurse Association during the week and weekends and then full time
in the summer.
Its been a long haul. I feel wonderful. Im almost in shock that I
can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, she said.
UNMC College of Nursing Professor Mary McNamee, Ph.D., said Simpson
is a mild-mannered, concerned, caring person. Simpson currently works part
time for the VNA at the Hospice House.
If you were a hospice patient, you would love to be cared for by JoPhena,
Dr. McNamee said. She will make an excellent nurse.
With many challenges behind her Simpson is ready to give the kind of
care that was given her 21 years ago.
I think its very important that nurses talk with patients, she said.
Plenty of time is spent trying to get the patient well, but I think that
it helps the patient feel better when the nurse can spend some time talking
with them.
UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state.
Through its commitment to research, education and patient care, UNMC has
established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for cancer research
and treatment and solid organ transplantation. More than $34 million
in research grants and contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists annually.
In addition, UNMC’s educational programs are responsible for training more
health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution.